What military restrictions were imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles?

• The army was limited to 100,000 men.
• There was to be no conscription. All soldiers had to be volunteers.
• Germany was not allowed tanks, submarines or military aircraft.
• The navy could only have six battleships.
• The Rhineland was demilitarised.

What were Germany's main territorial losses under the Treaty of Versailles?

• Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France.
• Eupen, Moresnet and Malmedy were given to Belgium.
• West Prussia and Posen were given to Poland.
• Danzig was to be a free city under the League of Nations.
• Memel was given to Lithuania.
• The area known as the Saar was to be administered by the League of Nations for 15 years.
• Upper Silesia was handed to Poland.
• Northern Schleswig was given to Denmark.
• Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania became independent states. Germany had taken these from Russia in 1918.
• German African colonies were taken away. Togoland and Cameroon to Britain and France. German East Africa to Britain. German South West Africa to South Africa. New Guinea to Australia. Samoa to N.Zealand. The Marshall, Mariana and Caroline Islands went to Japan.

What did Clemenceau want to achieve from the peace settlement of 1919-20?

• He wanted Germany to pay for the cost of the damage.
• He wanted revenge on Germany for all the suffering.
• He wanted revenge for the defeat in the war of 1870-71 and the loss of Alsace-Lorraine.
• He wanted to ensure Germany could not attack France again by taking land and weakening industry, reducing her armed forces.
• He wanted to split Germany into a number of small states. If not Germany should lose the Rhineland, Saarland, Upper Silesia, Danzig and East Prussia.

What did Wilson hope to achieve from the peace settlement of 1919-20?

• Wilson did not want Germany treated harshly because he thought that if Germany was punished severely then, in the future, Germany would want revenge.
• He wanted to strengthen democracy in the defeated nations so that its people would not let its leaders cause another war.
• Wilson hoped that nations would co-operate to achieve world peace and in his 14th Point he proposed the setting up of an international body called the League of Nations.
• Wilson believed in 'self-determination' and he wanted the different peoples of Eastern Europe to rule themselves rather than be part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire

What did Lloyd George want to achieve from the peace settlement of 1919-1920?

• Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests by ending the threat to the Navy and Empire.
• He had promised the British public to "squeeze the German lemon until the pips squeak".
• To ensure that France did not become too powerful.
• Lloyd George did not want Germany treated too harshly because he wanted Germany as an important trading nation with Britain.
• Lloyd George did not want Germany treated too harshly because it may lead to future problems domestically (communism) and internationally.

Why did the aims of the 'Big Three' at Versailles differ? Why did they disagree over how to treat Germany? Why did the victors fail to get everything they wanted at Versailles?

• Wilson had his 'Fourteen Points'. He wanted these to be the basis for peace. At Versailles he was forced to compromise as others were less idealistic.
• Wilson was weakened by lack of support back home.
• Clemenceau wanted France to be secure from future German attacks. This meant weakening Germany and reducing its military strength. He even wanted the break up of Germany as a state, but he was opposed by Wilson and Lloyd George.
• The French wanted revenge on Germany for the destruction the war had caused and, therefore, wanted massive reparations. These were moderated by the influence of other two.'
• Lloyd George did not want to treat Germany too harshly as he wanted Germany as a future trading partner
• Lloyd George wanted to protect British interests but was aware that treating Germany too harshly would store up trouble for the future He had however promised the British people that he would 'squeeze the German lemon until the pips squeaked.

Why did Clemenceau and Lloyd George disagree over how to treat Germany?

• Clemenceau wanted to secure France from future German attacks by reducing German military strength and taking back Alsace-Lorraine and taking the Saar and the Rhineland.
• Lloyd George wanted to reduce German strength but he did not want to make France too powerful and therefore he would resist the taking of German territory to aid France.
• Clemenceau needed to placate a vociferous French public and therefore wanted severe terms like huge reparations to repair French damage. Britain had not been invaded and damaged and therefore Lloyd George wanted more moderate demands so that Germany would not seek revenge in the future and Britain could resume being an active trading partner with Germany.
• Clemenceau felt that Lloyd George was quite happy to treat Germany fairly in Europe, where France rather than Britain was most under threat. Lloyd George, however, was less happy to allow Germany to keep its navy and colonies, which could be more of a threat to Britain.

Why was Clemenceau dissatisfied with the Treaty of Versailles?

• Clemenceau wanted Germany broken up into many small states. This would have made them weak and therefore not a threat to France in the future. This was not acceptable to Wilson and Lloyd George.
• He had hoped to gain the Saarland permanently, but it was given to France for 15 years under a League of Nation's mandate.
• Clemenceau had hoped, unsuccessfully, to gain the Rhineland for strategic and industrial reasons. He wanted the Rhine as the French-German border.
• He was unhappy with a German army of 100,000. He hoped for much less so that the French did not feel threatened.
• Clemenceau was unhappy that reparations were not paid immediately to France, but referred to a commission which did not report until 1921.There was impatience because France had sustained enormous damage during the war in lives and property.
• He realised that the Treaty was not severe enough for the French public, who expected a treaty like the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. Clemenceau realised his career and government were in danger. In a few months he and his government were out of office.

Why did the terms of the Treaty of Versailles cause so much bitterness/horror in Germany?

• They thought the terms of the Treaty were harsh and unreasonable and they were not allowed to negotiate them. They called the Treaty a 'diktat'.
• It left the new Weimar Republic vulnerable and open to revolution by extremists as with the Spartacus League (1919) and the Freikorps (1920).
• Germany resented the loss of land to Poland. Germany was now split in two by the Polish Corridor.
• The army was their pride and joy and it was drastically reduced. Having to disarm left them vulnerable to attack from neighbouring states. Limiting the German armed forces would also create unemployment and a lack of security.
• They were forced to accept responsibility for war and the damage caused. For this they had to pay reparations which were extremely high and this led to inflation and hyperinflation. The Germans did not think that Germany was solely responsible for starting the war as implied in Article 231 and, therefore, should not have to pay the massive reparations.
• The terms made Germany weak economically as the land lost contained much of Germany's coalfield's and iron industry. This made it difficult to raise money to pay reparations
• Germany's colonies were taken and yet the Allies kept theirs.
• Many Germans were horrified to find that part of Germany had been handed over to Poland and they were under Polish rule. Those living in Alsace-Lorraine found themselves being governed by the French while those living in Eupen Malmedy were now living under Belgian rule. The loss for 15 years of the Saar Basin to France also horrified Germans as the German economy would suffer from its loss.

In what ways did the Treaty of Versailles weaken the German economy?

• Germany had to accept full blame for starting the war and, therefore, had to pay reparations of £6,600 million.
• A reduction in the numbers in the armed forces increased unemployment.
• The Saar and Upper Silesia were lost. These were important industrial areas.

Why did the Treaty of Versailles cause problems for Germany from 1919 to 1923?

• Germany thought the terms were harsh and unreasonable and they were not allowed to negotiate. This upset the German people.
• Many Germans did not realise they had lost the war and blamed the Weimar Republic for accepting the harsh terms of the Treaty. There were extremist attempts to overthrow the Weimar Republic such as the Spartacist League and the extreme nationalist Freikorps.
• Germany delayed reparation payments and French and Belgian forces occupied the Ruhr in 1923. The government action of printing more money caused the German mark to lose its value.
• The Ruhr crisis caused Germany to become bankrupt. A new government under Stresemann accepted that reparations would have to be paid.
• The harshness of the reparations made it extremely difficult for Germany to recover economically.
• The loss of the Saar and Upper Silesia did not help Germany's economic recovery.
• The drastic reduction of the armed forces caused security problems and severe unemployment.

How far did 'Clemenceau" achieve his aims at the Paris Peace Conference?

• Clemenceau had fought in the Franco-Prussian War and wanted revenge for France. He achieved a tough treaty on Germany, which could be considered revenge.
• Clemenceau also wanted security for France and this was achieved with the drastic reduction in the German armed forces.
• Clemenceau was successful in regaining Alsace-Lorraine, which had been taken by the Germans at the end of the Franco-Prussian War.
• Clemenceau wanted Germany split into many small states so that it could never threaten France again. This was resisted by Lloyd George and Wilson.
• Clemenceau wanted the Rhineland to be an independent state and the Saar to be French. Again, this was resisted by Lloyd George and Wilson.

How far did "lloyd George" achieve his aims at the Paris peace conference?

• Lloyd George had promised the British electorate to be tough on Germany, although he did not want to be too tough as Germany was a good trading partner. There is some evidence that he managed to moderate Clemenceau's tough demands.
• Lloyd George wanted to weaken the German navy and this was achieved when the Germans sunk their fleet and in the military terms of the treaty.
• Lloyd George wanted German colonies to destroy its empire and this was achieved.
• Lloyd George wanted to make sure that France did not become too powerful. He managed to resist many of Clemenceau's demands for the break up of Germany and the movement of the French-German border.
Lloyd George did not want too severe economic penalties because of Britain's trading with Germany, but this was hampered because of the demands for reparations.

How far did 'Wilson" achieve his aims at the Paris Peace Conference?

Woodrow Wilson was able to use some of his Fourteen Points, the most notable being the establishment of the League of Nations.
• Wilson was able to achieve some self-determination in the formation of new states such as Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

Wilson failed to get all his 14 Points as a basis for the Treaty as Lloyd George resisted the freedom of the seas point.
• Wilson did not want heavy economic penalties on Germany as this might lead to revenge in the future, but he failed to convince Clemenceau.

In what ways was the Treaty of Versailles designed to restrict Germany's ability to
attack France?

Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France.
The Rhineland was to be de-militarised.
The Saar Basin was to become a mandate under the League. It was handed over to France
for fifteen years. Eupen-Malmedy was handed over to Belgium and Northern Schleswig to Denmark. This
strengthened these countries and, therefore, helped protect France.
Limiting the German army to 100,000 and not allowing conscription lessened the threat to
France.
Germany was not allowed tanks or military aircraft and this meant less threat to France.

Why did the Treaty of Versailles punish Germany?

It was expected that if a country lost a war it would be punished by the victors. The French had been heavily punished in 1871 by the newly formed Germany and, therefore, Germany could expect similar treatment. Clause 231 had stated that Germany was solely responsible for starting the war and, therefore, should be punished. The 'war guilt' clause was highly controversial. Germany took the first major action of the war by following the Schlieffen Plan and invading Belgium and then invading France. Germany had caused massive damage to the infrastructure of Belgium and France. Even in
retreat, the Germans deliberately destroyed mines, railways, factories and bridges. By the end of 1917, Russia was defeated. In March 1918, Russia's new Bolshevik government signed the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk. The Germans inflicted severe punishment on Russia by taking Finland, the Baltic States, its Polish provinces and the Ukraine. It is not surprising the Allies wanted to heavily punish Germany similar to Germany's treatment of
Russia.

In what ways did the peacemakers of 1919-20 not deal successfully with the problems they faced.

The treaties left defeated countries very bitter and determined to get revenge. This is particularly true of Germany where Hitler gained support to overthrow the Treaty. The treaties failed in Central Europe as they created states with too many rival minorities, such as the Serbs, Bosnians and Croats forming Yugoslavia.Turkey was treated unfairly to satisfy France, Britain and Greece. The Treaty of Sevres only lasted three years. The Treaty punished the ordinary German people rather than those responsible. Would it have been better to keep Germany relatively happy with the rise of Communism in Russia? It was wrong to put the sole blame on Germany as other countries had followed aggressive imperialism including Britain and France.

In what ways did the peacemakers of 1919-20 deal successfully with the problems they faced.

Many at the time thought it was about right. A more generous treaty would not have been acceptable to the people of Britain and France who wanted compensation for loss of lives and damage. The treaties made some progress in giving self determination as recommended in the
Fourteen Points. This led to Czechoslovakia, Poland and Yugoslavia being formed. In the Armistice, the Germans agreed to reductions in their armed forces, losses of territory
and the principle of reparations. They should not have been surprised when these were included in the peace treaty.
Many think a reasonable job was done as the problems faced were very complex with strong demands for the Treaty to be even harsher against Germany as Germany had forced a much harder peace on Russia under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

What were mandates?

A mandate was territory taken from the defeated powers and controlled by the League of Nations. Most mandates were effectively controlled by Britain and France, but some went to Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Japan.

What were plebiscites?

A plebiscite was when a popular vote was taken to determine to which country the population wished to be attached. Examples of plebiscites: North Schleswig voted to join Denmark and there was a plebiscite to be held over Saarland after 15 years of supervision by the League.

In what ways did peace settlements of 1919-20 not reflect the aims of President Wilson?

Wilson failed to get all his 14 Points as a basis for the peace settlements. Lloyd George resisted the freedom of the seas point as it would be against Britain's interests. Wilson did not want Germany treated harshly because he thought that if Germany was punished severely then, in the future, Germany would want revenge. He failed to persuade
Clemenceau, who wanted revenge for the Franco-Prussian War and the fact that most of the fighting in the First World War had taken place in France.

In what ways did the peace settlements of 1919-20 reflect the aims of President Wilson?

Wilson hoped nations would co-operate to achieve world peace and in his 14th Point he proposed the setting up of an international body called the League of Nations. The establishment of the League was achieved. Wilson believed in 'self-determination' and he wanted the different peoples of Eastern. Europe to rule themselves rather than be part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Some new states were established, such as Czechoslovakia, Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Wilson wanted to strengthen democracy in the defeated nations so that its people would not let its leaders cause another war. This was partially achieved with the setting up of the Weimar Republic in Germany.

How did Clemenceau wish to punish Germany after World War One?

Clemenceau wanted Germany to pay for the cost of the damage. He wanted the return of Alsace-Lorraine. He wanted to ensure that Germany could not attack France again by taking land, weakening industry and reducing her armed forces. He wanted to split Germany into a number of small states. Germany should lose the Rhineland, the Saarland, Upper Silesia, Danzig and East Prussia. Germany should lose all its colonies. He wanted reparations.

Why did Wilson want a 'league of nations'?

Wilson was horrified by the devastation of the First World War. He wanted to avoid this in the future and he felt a league of nations would be successful in achieving this.
'Wilson was a peace-loving man and an idealist who wanted to find solutions to problems. He felt that, if there was an organisation with most of the countries in the world, nations could co-operate to achieve world peace and build a better standard of living for all its citizens.